lifelines cut. government forces block food and supplies into syria's commercial capital, then strike at rebels from above. the streets of aleppo are ringing with gunfire and exploding grenades. government troops are trying to flush out opposition fighters from their positions and reportedly are blocking essential supplies. an anti-government activist in damascus says the military is indiscriminately bombing aleppo and she'd they've cut off

supplies of electricity, water, and food. residents have lined up to buy food in rebel-controlled areas. government forces are attacking from the air and the ground. helicopters and tanks have launched repeated assaults. united nations officials say at least 200,000 people have fled the city. those people are joining an exodus out of aleppo. they are passing others returning toight alongside opposition forces. many syrians were fleeing into turkey over this border. the checkpoint is about 50 kilometers west of aleppo. a truck driver from aleppo said the city is devastated. he said outsiders have to intervene immediately to save the lives of children. opposition figures have been calling on syrian youths to join their fight against forces loyal to president bashar al-assad. many have answered the call. a man returns to aleppo said assad continues to kill women and children, so the man said he had to return to protect his family and his neighbors. a senior syrian diplomat has become the latest to resign from

assad's government. british officials say alubi is no longer willing to represent a regime that has committed such violent and oppressive acts against its people. u.n. secretary general has issued a warning to the assad government. he's told syrian officials not to use their stockpiles of chemical weapons under any circumstances. >> any use of such weapons would be an outrageous crime and a major concern for the entire international community. >> pan was referring to a comment last week by a spokesperson of the syrian foreign ministry. the spokesperson said the military might use chemical weapons if foreign troops intervened in the conflict. pan called on the syrian government to safeguard their stockpiles of the weapons and said the situation is getting worse for u.n. observers. a u.n. convoy was attacked on sunday and more than a dozen vehicles have been destroyed so

far. he said syria is the u.n.'s most urgent priority. >> a top anti-whaling activist ended his silence. he was arrested in frankfurt in may, but disappeared after skipping bail. he release aid statement on the group's website saying he left germany because he dn't want to be extradited to japan. watson said he is sure that he was never be released once in japanese custody so he made the decision to leave germany while on bail. he also said he is in a safe place but gave no details about the location. watson was arrested for allegedly obstructing activities of a fishing vessel in 2002. released on bail on condition he present himself to police once a day. but has not been seen since july 22nd. watson is wanted by the japanese coast guard for ordering

sabotage against japan's whaling fleet. now se news from the sidelines of the olympic games in london of a soccer player expel ford a comment on twitter. and the organizers are fryitryio diffuse criticism over empty seats. officials with the swiss olympic team say they sent home the soccer player, he was tossed out of the games for posting an insulting comment against south koreans. he posted after his team lost to south korea. he is the second athlete to be thrown out of the london games over a twitter comment. a greek triple jumper was also expelled. >> olympic organizers responded to criticism about empty seats at many events. the seats are held by sports federations and corporate sponsors. officials began collecting unsold, unused tickets and offering them to the public online. they said they're asking the accredited groups to free up

more of their tickets. the man accused of shooting movie-goers in a colorado theater faced the families of the victims in court. james holmes sat in silence as pros prosecutors filed 142 charges. holmes suspected of killing 12 people and wounding 58 others earlier this month in the city of aurora. prosecutors charged him with murder, attempted murder and possession of ex-plea sievmr ex. he said yes when the judge asked if he understood the charges. lawyers expect the case will hinge on holmes' men state at the time of the shooting. defense lawyers say he was receiving psychiatric treatment before the crimes. prosecutors will consult the victims' families before deciding on whether to demand the death penalty.

u.s. computer giant apple and south korean computer, competitor, samsung electronics have entered a legal battle over smartphones and tablet computers. jury selection began at the federal courthouse in san jose, california. the firms have fought about 50 similar trials around the world since april of last year. lawyers for apple are asking the court to stop samsung from selling smart phones and computers in the u.s. and demanding compensation for the loss of market share. the apple side says designers at samsung copied the iphone after the smart phone hit the market in 2007. samsung's lawyer argue the iphone was not an original design and say people at apple based their model on others from sony. samsung counter sued. lawyers claim apple infringed on patents for communication technologies. the trial expected to take four week. billions of dollars and control

of the u.s. smart phone and tablet market are at stake. it is clear the apple/samsung face-off is getting more intense. the two phones are almost on par last year for global share. apple 18%. samsung, 17%. samsung has been gaining mow men tmen -- momentum. leaped to 32%, thanks to a smartphone launched in may. apple dipped to 16%. for tablet computers, apple had a global share last year of 62%. what complicates the company relaotianshr relationship. the giant requires them for semiconductors for cell phones. industry experts say a prolonged court battle would hurt both firms. a patent war will not benefit consumers.

if apple wins, samsung may have to stop selling phones in the u.s., or modify their design. and itch the jury favors samsung, apple may have to pay huge fees to use its rival's patents. win or lose. the lawsuit spells damage all around. new york based bank is suing lenders in a scandal over manipulation of interest rates. lawyers for the berkshire bank filed suit against 16 financial institutions. they say those lenders cheated berkshire out of income by setting the london interbank offered rate lower than actual levels. the bank is seeking damage from all financial institutions that reported dollar based libor rates from august '07 to may 2010. bank of america, citibank, japan bank of tokyo, mitsubishi, and libor is an average of bank interest rates and benchmark for other rates including those for

housing loans. it underpins trillions in transactions. some of the world's biggest financial firms have been caught up in the rigging scandal. barclay's was ordered to pay $400 million in fines for manipulating libor. internal affairs ministry spokesperson says the adjusted rate in june stood up 4.3%. number of people without jobs was over 2.8 million. people with jobs stood at more than 63 million. the people of the labor ministry say, job availability rose for a 13th straight month. 82 positions available for every 100 job-seekers. spokespersons for the labor ministry say reconstruction projects in fukushima are

improving in the prefectu. with the jobs rate rising so is spending. spending market year on year increased for the fifth straight month. japan's internal affairs ministry says households of two or more people spent an average off bout $3,400 in june, up 1.6% from the previous year in yen terms. a large part of the rise is put down increased new car purchase thanks to government subsidies for eco friendly vehicles. incomes are also inching up. average income of salary earning households of more than one person rose by 3.8% s to more than $9,000. that marks sixth straight mark of increases. ministry officials say household spending has recovered to predisaster levels as the economy gets back on track. they add they will quickly watch the figure as they're not sure if the trend will continue once the subsidies loseheir effectiveness.

people have been using the term offshoring to describe companies that move production and jobs overseas. business leaders who offshore say they have little choice but to go where costs are lower. executives at some companies are swimming against this tide. they say nurturing skilled workers at home leads to better product and happier customers. >> reporter: workers at toyota have rolled out a new model in the lexus lineup. lexus is toyota's premium luxury car, taking on german rivals in the u.s. and chinese markets. production of the new lexus began this month at a factory in japan. this goes against the trend. toyota executives had previously said with the value of the yen

at historic highs, they would have to move more production offshore, but this new lexus is staying home. >> translator: the lexus is built on value-added japanese skills and technologies. that's why we're holding fast to the concept of made in japan. >> reporter: toyota officials say their skilled and seasoned workers are key for the company's quality. they can run their fingers over the body of the car and find irregularities of barely a tenth of a millimeter. some japanese computer firms are also choosing to build their top of the line products at home. workers at this sony pc factory make the machines on which the company stakes its brand. for the last two years, the factory has exclusively produced sony's most high-end products. the aim is to be able to respond

quickly to changes in consumer needs and the demand for top quality. one challenge with this computer model has been to make it as slim as possible. conventional models have vertical screws. but in this thinner version, the screws are diagonal, allowing engineers to make the product thinner. sony engineers have made this computer 30% slimmer than previous models. this flexibility in production was conceived in this conference room, where designers and production workers meet. most companies don't station designers at production sites, but in this factory, workers from the two divisions collaborate at the early stages. >> translator: if possible, i want to move it this way just one millimeter. >> translator: a whole millimeter? we're working with tenths of millimeters here. >> translator: is it too hard to change now?

>> translator: our biggest advantage here is that designers can hear a request from the production team and discuss them on the spot. it's all about perfecting the product. >> reporter: the computer produced here is extremely popular and is being shipped not only domestically, but to more than 50 countries. >> translator: i feel we should focus on how to enhance the made in japan concept rather than just trying to make a better product. >> shifting production offshore may save a company money, but some technologies and craftsmanship can't be measured in terms of cost. many believe preserving these skills is one way to create truly competitive products for the world.

>> saw. government officials criticized chinese leaders for suppressing religious activities and noted marked deterioration in the respect for and protection of religious freedoms. state department officials released their annual international religious freedom report. they say chinese authorities placed increased restrictions on religious practice, especially in buddhist monestaries. and convents in the tibetan autonomous region. the clampdown attributed to at least a dozen setting themselves on fire and cases the report arrested buddhist monks protesting the crackdown, and the report said some of them apparently died as a result of torture. state department officials said tibetan buddhists in china are not free to invenerate their spiritual leader, the dalai lama and they said government leaders continue to oppress muslims living in parts of china. chinese officials are aiming for the moon. state media reports they'll launch an unmanned spacecraft

next year to the lunar surface. the spacecraft will carry out surveys of the moon's terrain. the space agency launched its first lunar orbiter in 2007, then another three years later. officials say they'll send up another unmanned probe in 2018 to collect soil and stone samples. they are pushing ahead with an ambitious space program. in june, experts successfully tested docking technology. a manned spacecraft hooked up with a space module in orbit around the earth. china's cinema extravaganza boasts films local and foreign. the kind of attention the government is coop keen to attr. one film this year got little attention. a report from shanghai's cultural fringe.

>> reporter: the 15th international film festival took place in june. the event showcased 2,000 films from choina and overseas. organizers invited a host of film directors and actors from abroad. the chinese government is keen to develop the best of all world class event. many films got billing in state run media. but this screening was not one of them. it took place in a small cafe. the film is a documentary. it tells the story of villagers campaigning against the dam project. the title is "waking the green tiger." chinese director, shot the film over a period of five years. the setting is the province in southern china. the film focuses on the village

on the upper reaches of the yangzee river. and one day officials order everyone to relocate. they're going to build a dam. ordinary people suddenly facing the lost of homes and livelihood, the film is a record of how the villagers respond. people in the villages hear about the eviction, before long. a protest movement is born. >> simply put, the film is about

an awakening, ordinary people having to speak up or lose everything. it has a happy ending. and officials scrap the dam project. civic action is a sensitive subject in china. officials order the director to cut some scenes from the film. afterwards, members of the audience peppered the director with questions, they seemed moved by the story of villagers speaking out against injustice. this movie really gives people hope. >> i felt that the government decision was final. i was surprised that civic action can bring change. and film organizers gave the film almost no publicity. as a result turntohe turnout wa

slow. but the director feels being able to show the film at the festival was a significant achievement. >> translator: showing the film at the festival means that it had the government's approval. i hope to show the film to choon ease people at other occasions. the basing solution to all of life's problems is for and the government has high hopes for the shanghai festival. and trying to promote the image of a modern, open culture. authorities face a dilemma. a platform of film can become a stage for social activism. something that authorities could not avoid. we have been reporting there are two tropical storms in the specific right now. one has reached japan's islands. let's get the latest from rachel ferguson at the weather desk.

>> hi there. yes, we have been talking about two tropical storms in the western pacific. one of them, just moving across the island at the moment bringing those strong winds and the heavy rain. the winds are strong enough to generate waves up to three to four meters along the pacific edge of japan. this system is moving fairly quickly. 30 kilometers an hour at the moment. so those conditionsab will move with it. we could see landfall wednesday night into thursday morning. after that it looks like it could clip the southern edge of the korean peninsula and head up into the northeastern coast of china. another system, severe tropical storm is already a big problem, saola, it has brought extensive flooding. let's look at what happened in manila when the system moved

very close. the storm wreaked havoc in manila. we have rivers swelling here. extensive flooding. riverside communities had to evacuate and seek shelter and seek higher ground. schools and businesses were also affected. and many areas, shut down completely for the day monday. unfortunately, even though the system is starting to pull away. we'll see another day's worth of rain here in the north. the system is moving very slowly. so that means prolonged heavy ran coming down over the same area. we are expecting to see the heavy rain targeting par fk laerl okinawa as well as taiwan. in the northern half of taiwan. you can see as much as 600 millimeters of rain. in the next three days. and that will include taipei. more than a meter of rain in the next few days from the system. expecting extensive flooding,

potential for landslides as well as the very strong wind coming in. there is already very heavy rain moving through northern china. and the rain could bring 100, 250 millimeters. and landing on already saturated land. so, flooding, landslides, high risk too. now head through to north america. more storms to the southeast. from florida up to the mid-atlantic. you will be dealing with unsettled weather today. and to the midwest and up into northern quebec to the great lakes region. very unsettled. to the east, not too bad. you are getting much needed rain across the four corners. but when that monsoon rain cups -- rain comes in, that could be pretty heavy. a dome of pressure keeping things dry and extremely hot in the south. and oklahoma city, 42 degrees for you today. unfortunately doesn't look like it is going to change. into the next few days end of the week.

we'll get up to 43 degrees in oklahoma city. only coming done to 39 by friday. other major cities in the region, dallas, kansas city, wichita. around the 40 degree mark. take care in the heat. i will leave you with your extended forecast. ♪ ♪

♪ one more story before we go. olympic athletes are wowing the crowds in london with their physical prowess. but visitors may not realize how extensive the city's makeover was ahead of the games. in addition, organizers have spruced up icons that have long

graced city's streets. nhk world has that story. >> reporter: so here we are at the square in london where people are on their way to work. but there's something slightly different about this place today. admiral nelson is sporting new head gear. the iconic statue is wearing a union jack bygone hat made by london's oldest hat maker. the company actually designed nelson's original hat more than two centuries ago. >> it's very good. looks very good. i wish i had a cap like that. looks very good. yeah, very impressive. >> wow. that's pretty cool. >> that is cool. >> the head designer, that's awesome. >> how do you think he'd look with a hockey helmet on? >> reporter: the company made a life-size replica of the statue's head. it used a crane to place the hat on the 50-meter-high monument.

the mayor of london, a fashion magazine, and leading british hat makers collaborated to give 20 london statues a makeover. >> it was important for us. there are a lot of really dynamic and fantastic talents working in england, and it was really important for us to give them a showcase when often they are the unsung heros behind the designers. it was really good to get them out there and on a stage. >> reporter: britain has also capped statues of winston churchill, william shakespeare, and queen victoria. they'll wear the headgear until thursday. nhk world, london. >> all right. that's all for now on this edition of "news line."

i'm yuko aotani. more news at the top of the hour, do join us then. thank you for watching.